Several states will be holding elections to their assemblies in the next few months and the air is already thick with promises of bribery. One party is promising free mixer/grinder to women, free laptops to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe students, 35 kg of free rice to Below Poverty Level families and free bus travel to senior citizens if elected back to power. This is in addition to free color televisions which it promised in the previous election. So who is going to pay for this bag of goodies that this party is so generously promising? The taxpayer, of course. Why do politicians make such extravagant irresponsible promises which will bankrupt the exchequer? Because winning elections is extremely lucrative for politicians, their families, including several wives, and friends. This is the same party which is said to have caused a loss of Rs 600 billion to the exchequer in the 2G scam where, according to rumor, it made a cool Rs 100 billion from telecom companies who were given licenses illegally for token sums of money. There is no business in the world where the investment is paid by the taxpayer but the profits go to the players. However, no one will dare protest about such blatant robbery. Three journalists were killed when they exposed one of the players as a thief but the murderer is not only free but is promised a very high post if victorious. The money for the bribery will be raised through illegal loot. One way is to force doctors to renew their registrations every few years for large sums of money. This while selling fake flying licenses for Rs 500000. Politicians and civil servants continue to loot while hapless citizens pay the price.